Broken Frontier releases 2018 Small Press Yearbook

Comics culture site Broken Frontier has published its 2018 Small Press Yearbook, an anthology celebration of the work of European indie talent including BF’s annual ‘Six Small Press Creators to Watch’.

This year’s book, which features a cover by recently announced 2018 Myriad First Graphic Novel Competition winner Jenny Robins, includes work from rising stars Peony Gent, Josh Hicks, Olivia Sullivan, Anja Uhren and Kate-mia White, who all provide stories on the loose theme of ‘Brief Encounters’.

This anthology again offers a great snapshot of some of the very best independent comic creators out there, and is well worth tracking down.

‘A Collection of Raindrops’ by Anja Uhren

Originally from Germany, now living and working in Sheffield as a full time illustrator, Anja Uhren describes herself as a storyteller, working with images and words to deliver emotionally driven narratives with an ethereal quality. Her work often focuses on the small moments, the magic and beauty of everyday life and encounters.

She loves drawing, travelling and comics and nothing better than combining all three. On her journeys, big and small, she always carry one or two sketchbooks to record observations and impressions which later inform and inspire my projects.

For more on the work of Anja Uhren visit her website here and follow her on Twitter here. You can find her online store here

‘Battery Acid’ by Josh Hicks

Josh Hicks work will first have come to readers’ attentions from anthologies like Off Life and Dirty Rotten Comics but he is, perhaps, most well known for his splendidly madcap and self-published Glorious Wrestling Alliance book.

He’s drawn and made up stories and stuff since he was a kid, and has always doodled little comics or made animations, but never really applied that to anything solid. “I ended up studying film at university and the storyboards were always more polished than the finished thing, so after a while comics just seemed natural,” he told Broken Frontier last year.

For more on the work of Josh Hicks visit his site here and follow him on Twitter here. Visit his online store here

‘Angel Egg’ by Kate-mia White

Leeds-based artist Kate-mia White’s ongoing passion project A Dark Forest has certainly embraced the creepier origins of those fictional moral object lessons. Four issues have been published to date with their popularity on Kickstarter self-evident from their target-smashing fundraising totals.

Set in the 19th century, A Dark Forest centres on 17-year-old Elizabeth Kathrine Moss and her younger sister Grace. The pair live with their puritanical father in the town of Whitewood, surrounded by an ominously eerie forest. When strange events begin to occur around the family, Elizabeth finds herself having to defend them from the suspicions of the local villagers while pondering the mystery surrounding her sister…

For more on Kate-mia White’s work visit her site here and follow her on Twitter here. You can also visit her online store here

‘Nazareth’ by Olivia Sullivan

Olivia Sullivan is an illustrator and moving image designer, with a Masters in IED, Moving Image Design, from the Royal College of Art who gained her BA in Illustration from Camberwell College of Arts, UAL.

For more on the work of Olivia Sullivan/Zen Bucko visit her website here and follow her on Instagram here. Visit her online store here

‘Uxbridge Road’ by Peony Gent

Working across a wide variety of mediums, from ceramics to print to simple graphite on paper, Peony Gent prioritises narrative and emotion above all in her work. She currently lives in London, studying Visual Communication at the RCA.

For more on Peony Gent’s work visit her site here and follow her on Twitter here. Visit her online store here.

Says Broken Frontier Editor-in-Chief Andy Oliver, “Our third Yearbook reflects our continuing desire not just to cover the best new talent on the small press scene but to actively champion, promote and nurture it. We’re committed at Broken Frontier to elevating deserving new creative voices to the next level of recognition.”

The Yearbook launched at London’s acclaimed Gosh! Comics on 7th July alongside Seekan Hui’s A Projection from Avery Hill Publishing, as part of the UK and Ireland’s annual Small Press Day event. Many of the creators involved were in attendance.

The book also features stories by artists who began in self-publishing and whose earlier work was featured at Broken Frontier.

Published by

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, John describes himself as is a "freelance comics operative", working as an editor, as Creative Consultant on the Dan Dare audio adventures for B7 Media, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival.
John has worked in British comics publishing for over 30 years. His credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine at Marvel UK and Star Trek Magazine and Babylon 5 Magazine at Titan Magazines. He also edited STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics, including Team M.O.B.I.L.E. and The Beatles Story. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War and “Dan Dare” for Tian Books.
He’s the writer of “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz, published on Tapastic; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood for digital comic 100% Biodegradable.
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